Virginia M. Van Beek, nee Mueller, 88, of West Bend, passed away peacefully Tuesday, October 20, 2015 at St. Vincent Hospital in Carmel, IN.
She was born on October 8, 1927 in the town of Barton to the late Roman and Frances (nee Eisenmann) Mueller. On August 25, 1948, she was united in marriage to Leonard Van Beek at St. Mary's Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Barton. After their marriage, they farmed in Allenton for five years and then moved to West Bend. Leonard passed away on October 14, 2011.
Virginia had a passion for tending to the beautiful flowers that surrounded her home and baking wonderful desserts, never failing to have freshly baked cookies to serve to visiting family and friends. Virginia will be remembered for her gentle spirit, willingness to serve others, and the tremendous amount of love that poured out of her heart. She Blessed all who knew her through her living example of how to handle life's journey with kindness, patience, strength, and grace. Her positive, independent attitude was always a reminder of how to handle life's joys and trials. As a devout Catholic, she had a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and enjoyed praying the Rosary everyday. Virginia loved her family, and especially enjoyed receiving regular phone calls from her daughter and grandchildren and watching her great-grandchildren grow.
Virginia is survived by a daughter, Jane (Tom) Haug of Noblesville, IN; two grandchildren Christopher (Debi) Haug of Portland, OR; and Carrie Haug of Clearwater, FL; three great-grandchildren, Joshua, Samuel, and Mary; a sister Mary Ann Paulus of the town of Barton; a brother Jerome (Barbara) Mueller of the town of Barton; sister-in-law, Hildegard Mueller of West Bend; four Godchildren Gail Paulus, Elaine (Sauer) Horn, Mike Purucker, and Jeff Mueller; other relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, two brothers, Jim Mueller and Richard Mueller, brothers-in-law Herman Paulus and Vincent Groh, and sister-in-law Bernice Groh.
A Mass of Christian Burial in remembrance of Virginia will be held on Friday, October 23 at 11:30am at St. Frances Cabrini Catholic Church, 1025 S. 7th Avenue, West Bend, and burial will follow in St. Mary's Cemetery in the town of Barton. Visitation will be at the church on Friday from 9:30am until the time of service.
The family would also like to thank all of the wonderful neighbors who have surrounded her and Leonard during their time living in West Bend. They especially want to thank Jerry and Mary Falkowski who were caring and loving neighbors, affording her the opportunity to live in her home for as long as she did.